My personal spindle Hell.

Thank you, yes, that's why I mentioned mine is "like" those.

 

I'm sorry, I don't see the resemblance.

A Savonarola chair can have any kind of decoration. Yours happens to have a face, but so do many. Others have a north wind mask, and yet others have a crest, or simply floral carving.
The range of designs is vast, but there are no sub-categories, they are all Savonarola chairs.

 

Really hard to say what the wood is. Could be something like birch with a red stain to mimic mahogany. I think birch spindles with a mahogany stain would work quite well with this regardless of what the wood really is.

The face on the chair looks more Roman or Grecian to my eye. Classical inspiration for sure.

 

Thank you for those details. I am so intrigued by this piece that you guys would not believe it.

 

It’s really interesting. I can’t find anything that has the same kinds of very heavy paws, fairly thin (?) spindles and a classical-looking head in the back.

You got a good deal, methinks! (Not knowing anything about the antique furniture market at the moment…) The crack in the middle might need to be stabilized, too. In the seller’s photos, it looks like it might extend into the seat.

Edited for clarity.

 

Re: dowel method-I think that is your best bet. It takes skill, experience, and excellent tools to get it right. Two YouTube artisans that I follow do this kind of work all the time, and both are formally trained in furniture making and refurbishing. Crigun, DE, and AT Restoration, Lithuania. They make it look like a snap, but it is not. Watch these guys-because they are great!-then take the chair to an expert.

 

I'm still trying to resolve this. Not only does the one need repair, I need another made just like it.

If anyone has a pal that does woodworking, pls let me know.

 

Do what I did and buy a wood lathe. I use it only occasionally, but nice to have when I need it. Buy one when on sale at harbor freight, or get a used one. They are big and not in high demand, if you find a used one they will often throw in the turning tools. If you have woodworking skills, easy to pick up from watching a few hours of YouTube videos.

If you don’t think you have the skills needed then finding someone locally as suggested is the best. Once turned, you need to install them, and unless the chair is really loose, this can be difficult too. If it is loose enough to easily slip in, then whole chair should probably be tightened with glue. Do you have the skills for that?

Unfortunately, high quality furniture repair is usually not cheap, so you are best off learning the skills yourself using reclaimed scrap wood. The used value of furniture is unlikely to be worth the expense to hire someone to buy new materials and do high quality work.

 

Thanks! Yeah I'm no carpenter. I can fix mechanical stuff but not a good wood person.

I've been watching reclaimed spindles on EBay, maybe one day it will pop up.

 

If you're in the US see if there's a Woodcraft store near you. The (mostly) men who work there are very knowledgeable in all forms of woodworking, and - more importantly - know a lot of other people and resources. good luck!

 

I know your strife. I got two chair spindles reproduced locally at $100 per each. This was from a custom furniture shop near me so it solved my problem but had hoped for a bit lower price. After I found a private individual that does wood turning and I will go to him for future projects. Try searching/looking on Facebook marketplace for custom furniture makers in your area. I’m in the New Orleans area.